FO371-41657 — Page 33

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15. .

It is of the utmost importance that the Empire should be

represented in strength in the recapture of HONGKONG and that the

British flag should be re-hoisted there without recriminations or

friction. Now is the time to prepare the ground for this. We

have very strong cards in our hands if we will play them.

Fortunately for this purpose the factors of Geography, Timing

and Strategy in the War against JAPAN are all in our favour. It

so happens that MALAYA and HONGKONG must be freed before the

Allies can proceed to drive the Japanese out of CHINA and

MANCHURIA. The testing of the quality of Chinese co-operation with

the British on a large scale will come first. The Chinese must

co-operate around and in HONGKONG with us, and we should be false

to our Imperial responsibilities if we failed to ensure that they

and all our Allies do so fully and to our satisfaction, not only

in operations of Army, Navy and Air Forces, but also in the

important para-military and political preparations. We should

insist on a free hand in conducting our own para-military

preparations in the HONGKONG area. It is after all at present

Japanese-occupied territory. It is not under the control of

CHUNGKING and any efforts of the Chinese to prevent us from

utilising and enlisting the anti-Kuomintang factions of the

hinterland on the excuse that they are Communists and must first

submit to CHUNGKING should be strongly resisted. We are interested

in the war against JAPAN and not in internal Chinese politics, and

to re-take HONGKONG we must organize our own 5th Columns there

with Chinese co-operation and not in the face of Chinese factional

opposition.

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I fear that I may be accused of writing in a spirit so

hostile to CHINA and to the Chinese as to nullify the value of my own arguments. This is far from being the case. I have had many and

difficult arguments with Chinese officials and have, even

embarrassingly, been acclaimed as "a friend of CHINA". So I am, but I have always tried to conduct myself as a British official seeking to establish the Anglo-Chinese relations within my contacts on a

clear basis of mutual respect and of mutual interest. I have always

taken great pains to think out and establish the basis of truth and

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